How Numair Got His Name
by Hubert24601
Summary: Synopsis: How Aly's nickname for Numair came to be, courtesy to the one who started it all. Rated T for awesomeness. Obviously. D/N if you squint!


_How Numair Got His Name_

This is my first dive into anything by Tamora Pierce, so I hope you like it, as I daresay I cannot do it justice.

Disclaimer: So, um, yes, I don't own anything mentioned, not even a bird. Tamora Pierce is the fantastic awesome owner of the world and characters; I just like to force them to play my sick, sick games. xD

Rated T.

A/U – so Daine can figure out if she loves Numair before/after RotG. Just sayin'.

Synopsis: _How Aly's nickname for Uncle Numair came to be, courtesy of the one who started it all._

Well, it sort of escalated from being about a nickname. I'm still not sure if it makes sense, but please tell me if it does or does not either way. It is OOC, just so you know.

Post EM – pre RotG

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Veralidaine Sarrasi knocked – or rather, banged – on the door to the King's Champion's rooms.

"Wake up!" she called frantically, her heart and mind reeling in turmoil. She had just had the strangest dream about her teacher, Master mage Numair… "Alanna, I don't care about the big bad bear that comes out of you in the morning – I just need to talk to you, so _wake up_ or I'm going to come in!" she threatened. The Lioness enjoyed the luxury of sleeping in late when she had the chance, and Daine knew this happened to be one of those days.

Daine was about to bang again when the door suddenly swung open, and her fist almost hit a stunned Numair Salmalín directly in the face. His eyes widened when he saw _her_, probably, Daine thought wryly, because it looked like he just rolled out of bed.

"Daine…?" His voice trailed off in surprise, apparently not quite awake yet.

"Where is Alanna?" Daine asked calmly, carefully keeping her face blank of emotions. Revaluating the situation, she realized that it couldn't have been what it seemed. She knew Alanna was very much in love with her husband, George, and she also knew that when having an intense conversation or study, Master Numair would easily forget things. Like where he was. Most likely he had fallen asleep on her couch, and the Lioness had not the heart to throw him out. Friends, and all that.

Numair still looked stunned, and a little bit trapped.

"Why?"

Daine growled and averted her eyes as she felt a blush rising to her cheeks. "I _need_ to speak to Alanna."

"She's not here," Numair replied, examining her keenly. "What's wrong, Magelet?"

Daine still scowled at the nickname he had long since given her as his pupil, and if possible, turned a brighter red. As confused as she was, she knew she did _not_ need Numair finding out about her dreams of him. And her. Ehmmm. Before she could retort that she was perfectly fine – the blush had still not faded – a voice suddenly came from Alanna's rooms, and it was certainly _not_ Alanna.

"Numy? Where are you?"

Daine watched as Numair turned a shade darker than her as he hastily shut the door and glanced both ways before stepping out into the hall. Daine had been right – he was clad only in a tunic and what looked like a blanket. He followed her gaze down at himself, and flushed bright red as he moved so fast he was almost a blur – he was back behind the door in a second.

"_Numy_?" she repeated, disbelievingly.

Numair winced. "Magelet, it's not – "

"One: Don't call me that, my name is _Daine_," she replied mildly, nose wrinkling. He was _not_ allowed to use that term of endearment with her when he was… canoodling. "And two? Go have fun! See ya." She sketched half a wave and took off down the hall, ignoring her teacher when he called after her, because, as she thought smugly, _if he wants to chase me, he needs to get dressed._

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For the next three days as luck would have it, Daine managed to avoid Numair pretty much continuously. For some reason, she was hurt and upset, as well as confused as to why she was feeling this way. What was it to her that he was canoodling? She tried to shrug it off, but her mind, or as she refused to think, her heart, wouldn't let her. Unfortunately, her luck ran out the fourth day at around lunch. On her way to her rooms, Numair managed to corner her, and she had honestly run out of excuses.

"Hello, Magelet," he greeted, happily enough, but Daine could tell that it was forced.

"Hello, Numy," she couldn't resist; he groaned and rubbed his face with his large hand.

"Okay, about the other day –"

"Technically it was four days ago," Daine snarked back. She was rather irritated with him and she didn't really know why. It was his choice to canoodle with whoever he wanted, wasn't it? Why did it sting so much, then? What business was it of hers anyway?

"Daine, if you'd just let me explain –" Numair started calmly, and would have been interrupted by Daine, but Daine was interrupted by Alanna storming down the hall in search of both of them it seemed. The Lioness angry was a thing to behold as her violet eyes flashed and her whole frame trembled.

"_Arram Draper._" Daine had never seen Alanna so angry that she was spitting before. "You are _not_ a magnificent mage at all, you second rated piece of horse –"

"Mithros, Mynoss, and Shakith, Alanna," Numair interrupted, though Daine saw that he held back a smile, "It's not nice to say things that you know you don't mean, and I have no idea what you're talking about."

"By all the gods!" Alanna cursed back, "You have the most insolent nature I have ever encountered in a person, and that _includes_ anyone else you can think of, you slimy piece of horse-"

"What's the obsession with horses?" Numair asked calmly, letting a glimmer of his smile loose. Daine stared at him in amazement. Did he _want_ the Lioness to get mad and kill him?

The Lioness was done turning red. She had gone on to match her eyes. "If you do _not_ get that hideous thing out of my rooms _this very instant,_ I will tell the king, and what's more, he may just take Daine away from you," she added, deadly quiet.

Daine turned from one stubborn form of magnificence to the other in fascination – never had she seen Numair look that upset so suddenly; never had she seen the Lioness so angry as to threaten him – never mind that she was her own person who could do as she wish, she did not have to stay and study with Numair if she did not want to, but a little voice at the back of her nagging mind said that she would never leave him. For once, she thought, the voice was right.

Numair made the first move, nodded curtly to Alanna, who suddenly turned on her heel and trotted off though Daine could hear her grumbling under her breath as she went.

"So tell me. What's with all the angry Alanna and smug Numy?" Daine asked warily.

Numair glared. "Will you ever stop using that name, Magelet?" Even when he was so obviously frustrated, he still used his pet name for her. Despite it all, it made her smile.

"Never."

Numair sighed. "Thought not. Okay, come on, I guess I have some explaining to do, don't I?"

"You should have probably started talking last year," Daine agreed as she started following him.

Numair turned back to pleadingly gaze at her. "Not you too, please, Magelet."

Daine giggled.

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_20 minutes later…_

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"Okay, so, well, ehm…" Numair fidgeted in front of Alanna's door, and Daine watched in wonder as he turned red. "Um, the other da –" Before Daine could even open her mouth to correct him, he finished hastily, "I mean, four days… well, it was like… ehh, I wasn't _doing_ anything in that room with anyone. Just…. something."

Daine raised an eyebrow at him. "Something? Animal something?"

"Ehm. You'll see."

"If it was, why didn't I hear it?"

"I don't know?" Numair offered sheepishly.

"Okay, okay, what was it? All this secrecy around is killing me."

Numair shrugged and flung open Alanna's door. There, standing on a stand, was one of the strangest birds Daine had ever seen.

"Numy, what is it?" she whispered in awe – entirely forgetting that she could just ask the animal herself – and her blue-grey eyes widened when the most remarkable thing happened.

_The creature spoke back._

"Numy? Where are you?" it squawked. _That sounded familiar…_

Daine took a step forwards. _Hello, sweetling,_ she said to the bird softly in her mind. _What is your name? _

_Stork-Man calls me Vera. I am a bird that flew to Stork-Man's window one day. He magicked me back to health, and I decided to stay and explore. He carried me here and kept me well fed. _The bird sounded quite content on her perch.

_I'm Daine._

The bird bowed her head ever so slightly.

"So I've discovered that it will repeat a certain phrase. And this gave me the idea; put it in Alanna's room," Numair explained softly as he came forward to gently stroke the bird's cheek.

Daine spun on him and put her hands on her hips. "But that's bound to aggravate her! A bird that won't stop talking? She'd kill the thing before a day passed!" she protested.

"She deserved it," Numair (the most powerful mage in the realm, mind) whined.

"For what?" Daine demanded.

"For…" he was talking too soft for Daine to hear, "you…" mumble, "just…" mumble.

"Excuse me?" One eyebrow rose.

"Ehm." He coughed. "Let's get Alanna in here..." He took off down the hall, leaving Daine and Vera to converse with each other.

_What a very strange man…_ Vera commented.

"You have _no_ idea," Daine answered back, eyes wide.

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Alanna took one step inside her room, then spun back round again to leave. "Not with that… thing in my rooms," she demanded. Vera ruffled her feathers, and Daine calmly soothed her.

_Hush now, we won't let the mean lady hurt a single feather,_ Daine cooed.

"Okay, so now that you're both here… I guess… I should…" Numair was hesitating, like usual.

"Spit it out, Numair," both Daine and Alanna said simultaneously, and they looked at each other and grinned.

"Well, okay… here it goes…"

They waited.

"April Fools! …" It was as if Numair had just turned them into trees.

Then…

Daine and Alanna looked at each other, shook their heads sadly, and then as one… tackled him.

Numair went down with a yelp, refusing to defend himself, and while Daine elbowed him in the ribs, Alanna got him in a headlock. After a moment of silent struggle and Numair admitting defeat, they both relaxed their holds.

"You poor, poor man," Alanna sighed, shaking her head once more.

"Why? You always tease me about not having a good April Fool's joke!" demanded Numair.

"Because, Numy," Daine chirped from under Alanna, "You're about a month late." Gathering up her courage, she scooted out from under the mess, leaned over her teacher's stunned face, and gently pecked him on the lips. With a small giggle, she sketched a wave at Alanna and took off out the door, grumbling about master mages.

"Hey!" she vaguely heard Alanna call behind her, "What about the bird?!"

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End file.
